Preparing for the Future of Work

As technology develops at an accelerated pace, cognitive abilities and tasks that were once thought to be reserved for humans are increasingly being carried out by machines, causing growing concern about the impact on jobs and the subsequent risks for government, business and people. In addition, globalization, demographics, climate change and geopolitical transformations are already making a significant impact on the work landscape.

There is a window of opportunity now for individuals, business and government to understand and proactively manage the transition to a new future.

The Preparing for the Future of Work Project seeks to bring clarity to an often polarized and ill-informed debate on the future of work through the dissemination of accessible, balanced and sector-specific knowledge as well as the development of actionable insights to help business and governments manage these dramatic shifts. The project is doing this in four ways:

1. Eight futures of work: Scenarios and their implications

Development of potential, but realistic, visions of the future that show what the work environment could look like under various factors and policy choices. These scenarios help frame the other activities in this project.

2. Towards a reskilling revolution

Proposal of reskilling pathways for human capital in disrupted industries and jobs to migrate to growing jobs or industries, collaborating with a wide range of data providers, to offer a realistic and specific view of reskilling and upskilling opportunities.

3. Industry and policy-maker roadmaps

Guidance for industry leaders and policy-makers on managing the transition to the new world of work. Roadmaps include industry and country profiles derived from the Future of Jobs Report, mapping of viable job transition pathways by industry, a review of best practices for reskilling and responsible displacement of workers, and recommendations for transitioning to a new world of work.

4. Industry-level action

A network of intra-industry task forces will be set up to prepare for the future of work. Each task force will bring together leaders in each industry to accelerate the future-proofing of workforce management, following the shared agenda in the industry roadmaps.